Pasadena Film Festival 2016 (Photo ©ColoradoBlvd.net).
Now in its third year, Pasadena’s first proper film festival has commandeered a theater at Laemmle’s Playhouse 7 from March 2nd through March 10th.
By Mark Tapio Kines
Founded in 2014 by the husband and wife team of Jessica Hardin and Marco Neves, the Pasadena International Film Festival – PIFF, for short – continues to grow. This year PIFF is screening 105 independent films, selected from over 500 submissions.
Although features and documentaries anchor every night at the Laemmle, PIFF may truly shine in its impressive variety of shorts. PIFF Creative Director Neves concedes that audiences often prefer to see features, but a block of shorts can be just as entertaining, if not more so – and if one short doesn’t grab you, you only have to wait a few minutes for the next one.
Local and international flare
PIFF Festival Director Jessica Hardin and Creative Director Marco Neves (Photo – Maelane Chan ©ColoradoBlvd.net).
With so much talent here in L.A., it’s no surprise that, as PIFF Executive Director Hardin notes, 60% of the films screening at PIFF are locally-made. (That said, she and Neves are serious about the “International” part of their festival’s name: filmmakers from as far away as France, England and Brazil are coming to town to present their work.) As a result, you stand a good chance of meeting cast and crew in person, either at the Q&As following each screening or at one of the nightly parties held throughout town. I attended the opening night mixer at Du-Par’s on South Lake Ave., and it was absolutely raging when I left at 12:45am.
A community for Filmmakers
The cast of 400 Miles (L-R) Aurora Rowland-Martinez, Rolando Molina, Eddy Martin, Danielle Rosario, and Peter Cortes (Photo Maelane Chan ©ColoradoBlvd.net).
Vicious (Short) actors (L-R): Bryant Trujillo, Rafael Martinez, and Tonny Zorrilla (Photo Maelane Chan ©ColoradoBlvd.net).
The screenings themselves are full of surprises: “The Schickles,” a feature-length comedy that premiered on PIFF’s opening night, drew such a huge crowd that Hardin and Neves had to scramble to secure a bigger theater at the Laemmle. Neves also reports that actor Michael Gross, best known for playing patriarch Steven Keaton on the ‘80s sitcom “Family Ties,” was a fervent audience member at previous festivals, and may well pop up again this year. Actress Kathleen Quinlan, who was born in Pasadena, (“Apollo 13,” “Family Law”) is also expected to make an appearance, in support of her film “The Dissection of Thanksgiving,” which screens Wednesday, March 9 at 7:55pm.
Neves insists, though, that PIFF was never meant to be about celebs. “Most festivals start off really nicely and wind up catering to the stars,” he says. PIFF, in contrast, is adhering to its primary mission of creating a community for filmmakers – part of Neves’ vision when he and Hardin were inspired by a film festival in Almería, Spain, in 2012. (It took two years of hard work to make PIFF a reality).
Two filmmakers infused with the community spirit are writer/producer/actor Mike Rad and director Michael Hilf, whose comedy horror short “It’s in the Kitchen” – shot in a Burbank apartment, entirely in one take – celebrates its World Premiere on Saturday, March 5th, at 9:40pm. “We’re excited to have a big packed theater where people can scream,” Hilf says, though he adds that “It’s in the Kitchen” is more amusing than disturbing. “You’ll be able to sleep at night.”
Getting on board
Colorado Boulevard during PIFF 2016 week (Photo – Emmanuel Kraultez ©ColoradoBlvd.net), PSIFF street banner (Credit cvindependent.com), AAFF street banners (Credit identitydesigned.com).
Although Neves says that the City of Pasadena has been helpful, some filmmakers feel that more could be done to promote the festival, from the city putting up banners on Colorado Boulevard to a mention on the Laemmle marquee, which seems like a no-brainer. Well, maybe next year. But for now, PIFF offers plenty of great, passionate filmmaking to feast on. Miss it at your peril.
> Here’s a full schedule of films and events, including some very intriguing – and free! – Hollywood panels at Vroman’s Bookstore on Sunday, March 6th. You can also pick up a festival program at Laemmle’s Playhouse 7. Don’t be surprised if the friendly festival directors are there to greet you.
Mark Tapio Kines is a film director, writer, producer and owner of Cassava Films. You can read more of Mark’s movie reviews (including OSCARS winning movies) here.
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